Early life

Polley was born in Toronto, Ontario. She was the youngest of five children born to Diane Elizabeth (née MacMillan), an actress (Street Legal) and casting director who died of cancer the week of Polley's 11th birthday. Polley was born to Diane and her second husband, Michael Polley, a British-born actor who became an insurance agent after Diane and he started a family. Her mother Diane had Scottish ancestry.

It was believed that Michael was the biological father of Polley, as well as Diane and his older children, Mark and Joanna, though all four of Polley's siblings (including Susy Buchan and John Buchan from Diane's first marriage) often teased Polley because she bore no physical resemblance to Michael. Polley discovered as an adult that her biological father was actually Harry Gulkin, with whom her mother had had an affair (as chronicled in Polley's film, Stories We Tell). Gulkin, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants, is a Quebec-born film producer who produced the 1975 Canadian film Lies My Father Told Me, and had met Diane after attending a play in which she acted in Montreal in 1978. When Polley turned 18, she decided to follow up on suggestions from her mother's friends that her biological father might be Geoff Bowes—one of three castmates from her mother's play in Montreal. Meeting with Gulkin as just someone who could provide information about Diane in Montreal, he informed Polley of his affair with Diane. Bowes and Michael Polley also confirmed, in Stories We Tell, that they had sexual relations with Diane during the run of the Montreal play. Gulkin's paternity was later confirmed by a DNA test.

Polley attended Subway Academy II, then Earl Haig Secondary School, but dropped out at age 15.

Career

Early career

Her first cinematic appearance was at the age of four, as Molly in the Disney film One Magic Christmas. She was also in the pilot episode for Friday the 13th - The Series, as well as appearing in a small role in William Fruet's sci-fi horror film Blue Monkey, both in 1987. At age eight, she was cast as Ramona Quimby in the television series Ramona, based on Beverly Cleary's books. That same year, she played one of the lead characters in Terry Gilliam's The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Polley burst into the public eye the following year, 1990, as Sara Stanley on the popular CBC television series Road to Avonlea. The series made her famous and financially independent, and she was hailed as "Canada's Sweetheart" by the popular press.

The show was picked up by the Disney Channel for distribution in the United States. At the age of 12 (around 1991), Polley attended an awards ceremony while wearing a peace sign to protest the first Gulf War. Disney executives asked her to remove it, and she refused. This soured her relationship with Disney, though she continued on Road to Avonlea until 1994. The show ran until 1996, although Polley did return as Sara Stanley for an episode in 1995 and for the series finale.

Acting career as adult

Polley appeared as Lily on the CBC television series, Straight Up. It ran from 1996-1998 and she won the Gemini Award for Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or Series for her role. Polley's subsequent role as Nicole Burnell in the 1997 film The Sweet Hereafter, brought her considerable attention in the United States; she was a fan favourite at the Sundance Film Festival. Her character in the film was an aspiring singer — on the soundtrack, she performed a cover of The Tragically Hip's "Courage" and Jane Siberry's "One More Colour", as well as the film's title track which she co-wrote with Mychael Danna. "Courage" was also played in the ending of an episode of Charmed, "Long Live the Queen" (season 4 episode 20). Polley appeared in two critically acclaimed small movies, 1998's Last Night and the well-received 1999 film Go with budding actress Katie Holmes, to end the 1990s.

She was cast in the role of Penny Lane in the big-budget 2000 film Almost Famous, but dropped out of the project to return to Canada for the low-budget The Law of Enclosures. Her role in the 2003 film My Life Without Me garnered the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in 2004. In the same year, she starred in a lead role in the stylish and successful remake of Dawn of the Dead, which was a departure from her other indie roles. In 2005, she starred in The Secret Life of Words, opposite Tim Robbins and Julie Christie. She was nominated as Best European Actress by the European Film Academy for her role as Hanna.

In 2006, Polley took a role on the acclaimed series Slings and Arrows during its third and final season. Polley's father, Michael Polley, was a regular on the show during its entire three-season run. She served as a member of the 2007 Cannes Film Festival jury. In 2008, Polley appeared as Nabby Adams in the HBO miniseries based on the life of John Adams. Polley played Elise in Jaco Van Dormael's Mr. Nobody, which was released in 2010. Critical response has praised the film's artistry and Polley's acting. Later that year, she also appeared in a cameo role in Bruce MacDonald's film Trigger.

Directing career

In 1999, Polley made her first short film, The Best Day of my Life, for the On the Fly 4 Film Festival. She also made a second short film that year, Don't Think Twice. Polley attended the Canadian Film Centre's directing program in 2001, and won the Genie Award for Best Live Action Short Drama in 2003 for her short film I Shout Love.

She made her feature-length film directing debut with Away from Her, which Polley adapted from the Alice Munro short story The Bear Came Over the Mountain. The movie, starring Julie Christie (with whom she had played in No Such Thing, 2001, and The Secret Life of Words, 2005), debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, 2006, as part of the TIFF's Gala showcase. Away from Her was acquired by Lionsgate for release in the US for the sum of $750,000. It drew rave reviews from Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and the three Toronto dailies, both for the performances of Christie and her co-star, Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent, and for Polley's direction. It also earned Polley a 2007 Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, and won the Genie Award for Best Achievement in Direction. At the 2008 Genies, she was also awarded the Claude Jutra Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by a first-time feature film director.

Polley wrote and directed her second feature, Take This Waltz starring Michelle Williams, Luke Kirby, Seth Rogen, and Sarah Silverman, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2011.

In 2012, her documentary film Stories We Tell premiered at the 69th Venice International Film Festival in competition in the Venice Days category. The critically acclaimed documentary examined family secrets in Polley's own childhood.

Also in 2012, Polley announced that she would be adapting Margaret Atwood's novel Alias Grace. In August 2014, during a profile of her work as a director, Polley announced that Alias Grace was being adapted into a six-part miniseries.

In June 2014, it was announced that she would be writing and directing an adaptation of John Green's Looking for Alaska.

Polley takes pride in her work and enjoys both acting and directing, but is not keen on combining the two. "I like the feeling of keeping them separate. I find that really gratifying. I can't imagine combining those. For me, I love the feeling of using different parts of my brain separately."

Political and social activism

Following the row with Disney, Polley dedicated more of her efforts to politics, becoming a prominent member of the Ontario New Democratic Party (ONDP), where Ontario legislator Peter Kormos was her political mentor. In 1996, she gave a nomination speech for Kormos at the ONDP leadership convention. After his death in 2013, Polley called that the "proudest moment in my life".

In 1995, she lost two back teeth after being struck by a riot police officer during a protest against the Provincial Progressive Conservative government of Mike Harris in Queen's Park. She was subsequently involved with the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty. She has recently scaled back her political activism. She was part of a group in 2001 which opposed the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas. The 3rd Summit of the Americas was held in Quebec City in April 2001. In 2003, she was part of former Toronto mayor David Miller's transition advisory team.

In 2009, Polley directed a two-minute short film in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. In advance of the film's airing in Canada during the 82nd Academy Awards, and following news reports that characterized the film as a marketing exercise for the margarine company Becel, Polley withdrew her association with the film. "In December 2009, I made a film to be aired during the Academy Awards that I believed was to promote the Heart and Stroke Foundation. When I agreed to make this film, I was thrilled, as I was proud to be associated with the work of this incredible organization. However, I have since learned that my film is also being used to promote a product. Regretfully, I am forced to remove my name from the film and disassociate myself from it. I have never actively promoted any corporate brand, and cannot do so now." In response, Becel said it was a "founding sponsor" of the Heart Truth campaign and had commissioned the film "to put heart health on the radar of Canadian women".

In January 2012, Polley endorsed Toronto MP Peggy Nash in the 2012 New Democratic Party leadership race to succeed Jack Layton.

Personal life

Polley is an atheist. On September 10, 2003, she married Canadian film editor David Wharnsby, her companion of seven years. They divorced in 2008.

In 2007, Polley discovered that the man who raised her was not her biological father. The story of her mother's affair and her biological father are detailed in her documentary Stories We Tell.

On August 23, 2011, she married Canadian law clerk David Sandomierski, who is working on his PhD in law at the University of Toronto. Their daughter Eve was born on February 7, 2012. In August 2014, Polley revealed that she had given birth to a second daughter.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1985	One Magic Christmas	Molly Monaghan
1986	Confidential	Emma
1987	Tomorrow's a Killer	Karla
1987	Big Town, TheThe Big Town	Christy Donaldson
1987	Blue Monkey	Ellen
1988	Adventures of Baron Munchausen, TheThe Adventures of Baron Munchausen	Sally Salt
1989	Babar: The Movie	Young Celeste (voice)
1994	Exotica	Tracey Brown
1996	Joe's So Mean to Josephine	Josephine
1996	Children First!
1997	Sweet Hereafter, TheThe Sweet Hereafter	Nicole Burnell
1997	Hanging Garden, TheThe Hanging Garden	Teen Rosemary
1997	Planet of Junior Brown, TheThe Planet of Junior Brown	Butter
1998	Jerry and Tom	Deb
1998	Last Night	Jennifer "Jenny" Wheeler
1999	Guinevere	Harper Sloane
1999	Existenz	Merle
1999	Go	Ronna Martin
1999	Life Before This, TheThe Life Before This	Connie
2000	This Might Be Good		Short film
2000	Weight of Water, TheThe Weight of Water	Maren Hontvedt
2000	Love Come Down	Sister Sarah
2000	Law of Enclosures, TheThe Law of Enclosures	Beatrice
2000	Claim, TheThe Claim	Hope Burn
2001	No Such Thing	Beatrice
2003	Event, TheThe Event	Dana Shapiro
2003	My Life Without Me	Ann
2003	Dermott's Quest	Gwen	Short film
2003	Luck	Margaret
2004	Dawn of the Dead	Ana Clark
2004	I Inside, TheThe I Inside	Clair
2004	Sugar	Pregnant Girl
2004	Siblings	Tabby
2005	Don't Come Knocking	Sky
2005	Secret Life of Words, TheThe Secret Life of Words	Hanna
2005	Beowulf & Grendel	Selma
2009	Mr. Nobody	Elise
2009	Splice	Elsa Kast
2010	Trigger	Hillary

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1985	Night Heat	Cindy Keating	"The Game"
1987	Screen Two		"Heaven on Earth"
1987	Hands of a Stranger	Suzie Hearn	TV film
1987	Friday the 13th: The Series	Mary	"The Inheritance"
1988-89	Ramona	Ramona Quimby	Main role
1989	Lantern Hill	Jody Turner	TV film
1990-96	Road to Avonlea	Sara Stanley	Main role
1991	Johann's Gift to Christmas	Angel	TV short
1993	Hidden Room	Alice	"Dangerous Dreams"
1994	Take Another Look	Amy	TV film
1996	Straight Up	Lily	Main role
1998	White Lies	Catherine Chapman	TV film
1999	Made in Canada	Rhonda	"It's a Science"
2006	Slings & Arrows	Sophie	Recurring role
2008	John Adams	Abigail Adams Smith	TV miniseries

Other work

Year	Title	Notes
1999	Don't Think Twice	Co-producer, writer, director
1999	Best Day of My Life, TheThe Best Day of My Life	Writer, director
2001	I Shout Love	Writer, director
2002	All I Want for Christmas	Director
2004	Shields Stories, TheThe Shields Stories	"The Harp"; writer, director
2006	Away from Her	Writer, director
2011	Take This Waltz	Producer, writer, director
2012	Stories We Tell	Writer, director
2016	Better Man, AA Better Man	Executive producer
Announced	Alias Grace

Awards and nominations

On October 16, 2010, it was announced that she would receive a star on Canada's Walk of Fame. In June 2013, she received the National Arts Centre Award recognizing achievement over the past performance year at the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards, where she was the subject of a short vignette by Ann Marie Fleming entitled Stories Sarah Tells. Polley was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada on December 30, 2013.

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ACTRA

• 2006 - ACTRA Toronto Award of Excellence (Won)

Academy Awards

• 2008 - Best Adapted Screenplay, Away from Her (Nominee)

Gemini Awards

• 2007-Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series, Slings and Arrows (Nominated)
• 1998-Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or Series, Straight Up (Won)
• 1998-Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series, The Planet of Junior Brown (Nominated)
• 1998-Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series, White Lies (Nominated)
• 1994-Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role, Road to Avonlea (Nominated)
• 1993-Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role, Road to Avonlea (Nominated)
• 1992-Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role, Lantern Hill (Won)
• 1990-Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role, Road to Avonlea (Nominated)
• 1988-Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role, Ramona, (Nominated)

Genie Awards

• 2008-Claude Jutra Award, (Special Prize)
• 2008-Best Director, Away from Her, (Won)
• 2008-Best Adapted Screenplay, Away from Her, (Won)
• 2004-Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, My Life Without Me, (Won)
• 2003-Best Live Action Short Drama, I Shout Love (Won)
• 2002-Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, The Law of Enclosures (Nominated)
• 1997-Best Original Song, The Sweet Hereafter, (Nominated)
• 1997-Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, The Sweet Hereafter, (Nominated)

Independent Spirit Awards

• 2000-Best Supporting Female, Go, (Nominated)

Toronto Film Critics Association Awards

• 2012-Rogers Canadian Film Award and Best Documentary Film Award, Stories We Tell

Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay

• 2014-Stories We Tell

[ Source: Wikipedia ]